You are here

John Switzer

I really appreciated what I got out of UTM. I have a sense of gratitude towards the contributions that UTM granted me in my life and career.

John Switzer

John Switzer is a member of the first graduating class in 1970 of Erindale College (later U of T Mississauga). As a second-year transfer student from Queen’s University, he made the switch to UTM to study mathematics and economics. After completing his degree, Switzer attended York’s Schulich School of Business, where he earned his MBA while becoming a chartered accountant. Upon graduation, Switzer joined the school’s faculty, teaching undergraduate and graduate classes. Following his time at York, he was, successively, a banking executive and management consultant.

Reflecting on his years at Erindale, Switzer remembers the campus as consisting of one main building and a couple of smaller facilities isolated by a vast amount of green space from the then-rural community. The “small class sizes and quality faculty” were the factors that most appealed to him. And even today, he values the commitment of UTM’s professors, both to their discipline and their campus. Their dedication, he says, continues to inspire excellence within the UTM community. Many years ago as a student, he notes, he struggled with his career path decision. It was, in large part, thanks to former Erindale economics professor, Michael Hare, that he chose a career as a CA.

Later on, Switzer began giving back to the campus, first as a donor and then with his time. He was elected an alumni member of U of T’s Governing Council in 2009, and was named the inaugural chair of UTM’s Campus Council in 2013, completing his term in 2015. He now serves as a Lieutenant Governor-in-Council appointee to Governing Council, and is chair of the board of the University of Toronto’s Asset Management Corporation. Switzer is the recipient of numerous awards including the Paul W. Fox Award and Arbor Award in recognition of his dedicated, distinguished and generous volunteer service to UTM. In the future, he hopes that UTM will continue to deepen and widen relationships with the community and expand its academic program offerings, specifically within the Institute for Management & Innovation.